Adventures in genealogy

Even an Ocean Can’t Separate a Son’s Love for Mom

The theme for this month’s Festival of Postcards is Water. Here’s a fine example of a watery scene from a 1950s French postcard (click on the image for a close-up view, then hit the “back” button to return here):

A postcard showing a map of the French Riviera and the Mediterranean

The text reads: “Dear Mother, I could not get a birthday card for you. I hope this will due. Happy Birthday. Jimmy” The postcard was mailed on 07 April 1958 from Nice, France with a lovely 20 franc stamp depicting the shrine at Lourdes. The text on the card reads (in French): A bird’s eye view from Cannes to Italy. The card shows a lovely view of the Côte d’Azur.

Jimmy is my father, who was serving in the Navy on a Mediterranean cruise aboard the USS Cadmus (AR-14) during the spring of 1958. His mother’s birthday was 11 April – I wonder if she got it in time? It was her 45th birthday – since I am nearing that age it seems too young to have a married son! I also couldn’t help but wonder if he also remembered to send my mother some wishes via postcard as well. The date he mailed my grandmother her birthday greeting was the date of my parents’ second wedding anniversary!